Search

This music score was submitted for Resonate 2024: An Open Access Call for Scores by the UCLA Music Library with Bent Frequency and Jan Berry Baker.

To evaluate the repeatability of a novel automated technique called Smart ERA (Smart Endometrial Receptivity Analysis) for the automated segmentation and volume calculation of the endometrium in patients with normal uteri,, and to compare the agreement of endometrial volume measurements between Smart ERA, the semi-automated Virtual Organ Computer-aided Analysis (VOCAL) technique and manual segmentation. This retrospective study evaluated endometrial volume measurement in infertile patients who underwent frozen-thawed embryo transfer (FET). Transvaginal three-dimensional ultrasound scans were performed using a Resona R9 ultrasound machine. Data was collected from patients between 2021 and 2022. Patients with normal uteri and optimal ultrasound images were included. Endometrial volumes were measured using Smart ERA, VOCAL at 15° rotation, and manual segmentation. Intra-observer repeatability and agreement between techniques were assessed using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Bland–Altman analysis. A total of 407 female patients were evaluated (mean age 33.2 ± 4.7 years). The repeatability of Smart ERA showed an ICC of 0.983 (95% CI 0.984–0.991). The agreement between Smart ERA and the manual method, Smart ERA and VOCAL, and VOCAL and the manual method, as assessed by ICC, were 0.986 (95% CI 0.977–0.990), 0.943 (95% CI 0.934–0.963), and 0.951 (95% CI 0.918–0.969), respectively. The Smart ERA technique required approximately 3 s for endometrial volume calculation, while VOCAL took around 5 min and the manual segmentation method took approximately 50 min. The Smart-ERA software, which employs a novel three-dimensional segmentation algorithm, demonstrated excellent intra-observer repeatability and high agreement with both VOCAL and manual segmentation for endometrial volume measurement in women with normal uteri. However, these findings should be interpreted with caution, as the algorithm's performance may not be generalizable to populations with different uterine characteristic. Additionally, Smart ERA required significantly less time compared to VOCAL and manual segmentation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To estimate the current prevalence of voice disorders among adults in the United States; to determine the association of individual factors with voice disorders. Methods: The 2022 National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) was analyzed to identify adults reporting voice problems in the past 12 months. Demographics were assessed, as well as the duration, severity, and resolution of the voice problem. The relationship between voice problems, gender, lost workdays, and long COVID was investigated. A comparison to the 2012 NHIS was made to determine changes in voice disorder prevalence. Results: 29.9 million Americans (95%CI[28.3–31.5]) annually report a voice problem, representing 12.2% of the population (95%CI[11.7–12.8%]). Overall, 26.8% and 13.2% reported the severity of their voice problem as moderate or severe, respectively. Only 5.1% (95%CI[4.3–6.0%]) of respondents sought treatment. Most voice problems were resolved within 1 week (53.0%,95%CI[50.9–55.1%]). Females were more likely than males to report a voice problem (14.4% vs. 10.0%,95%CI[13.7–15.1] and [9.3–10.7], respectively). The 17.6 million Americans with long COVID symptoms were more likely to have voice complaints than those without (21.1% vs. 11.6%,95%CI[18.9–23.5%] and [11.1–12.1%], respectively). Lost workdays were not significantly higher for those with voice disorders compared to those without (17.1 vs. 12.9 days,95%CI[12.0–22.1] and [11.0–14.8], respectively). Conclusions: Voice problems affect approximately 1 in 8 adults in the U.S. annually, demonstrating an alarming increased prevalence since 2012 using the same survey methodology. Relatively few individuals seek care for their voice problem, despite significant self‐reported impact. Further study is required regarding the impact of COVID and changes in voice use patterns on voice disorders. Level of Evidence: 3 Laryngoscope, 134:3713–3718, 2024 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract To evaluate the repeatability of a novel automated technique called Smart ERA (Smart Endometrial Receptivity Analysis) for the automated segmentation and volume calculation of the endometrium in patients with normal uteri,, and to compare the agreement of endometrial volume measurements between Smart ERA, the semi-automated Virtual Organ Computer-aided Analysis (VOCAL) technique and manual segmentation. This retrospective study evaluated endometrial volume measurement in infertile patients who underwent frozen-thawed embryo transfer (FET). Transvaginal three-dimensional ultrasound scans were performed using a Resona R9 ultrasound machine. Data was collected from patients between 2021 and 2022. Patients with normal uteri and optimal ultrasound images were included. Endometrial volumes were measured using Smart ERA, VOCAL at 15° rotation, and manual segmentation. Intra-observer repeatability and agreement between techniques were assessed using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Bland–Altman analysis. A total of 407 female patients were evaluated (mean age 33.2 ± 4.7 years). The repeatability of Smart ERA showed an ICC of 0.983 (95% CI 0.984–0.991). The agreement between Smart ERA and the manual method, Smart ERA and VOCAL, and VOCAL and the manual method, as assessed by ICC, were 0.986 (95% CI 0.977–0.990), 0.943 (95% CI 0.934–0.963), and 0.951 (95% CI 0.918–0.969), respectively. The Smart ERA technique required approximately 3 s for endometrial volume calculation, while VOCAL took around 5 min and the manual segmentation method took approximately 50 min. The Smart-ERA software, which employs a novel three-dimensional segmentation algorithm, demonstrated excellent intra-observer repeatability and high agreement with both VOCAL and manual segmentation for endometrial volume measurement in women with normal uteri. However, these findings should be interpreted with caution, as the algorithm's performance may not be generalizable to populations with different uterine characteristic. Additionally, Smart ERA required significantly less time compared to VOCAL and manual segmentation.

A growing body of research demonstrates that humans can accurately perceive the emotional states of animals solely by listening to their calls, highlighting shared evolutionary ancestry. Yet, the cognitive and perceptual mechanisms underlying heterospecific emotion perception have remained open to investigation. One hypothesis is that humans rely on simple acoustic heuristics to make such judgments, for example, perceiving higher-pitched calls as reflecting heightened emotional arousal (the "pitch rule"). This could lead to accurate judgments of emotion since in most mammals, as in humans, vocal fundamental frequency (the acoustic determinant of the pitch percept) does objectively correlate with emotional arousal. In the present study, we used digital pitch manipulation to create pairs of animal calls that were perceptually identical except for pitch, and we measured human perceptions of the caller's emotional arousal using an online survey. Calls of six phylogenetically diverse species were included as stimuli. Participants attributed slightly but statistically significantly higher arousal to higher-pitched versions of the same calls. Variation in application of the pitch rule across species was not well explained by familiarity, and prior experience with cats did not significantly predict sensitivity to pitch in cat vocalizations. Cross-species variation also did not align with phylogenetic distance from humans, or the hypothetical usefulness of pitch for making accurate judgments. Thus, the pitch rule may be a "mammalomorphic" heuristic leading to accurate emotion judgments in some taxa and call types and erroneous judgments in others, depending in part on phylogenetic distance and the mechanisms of call production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study is to trace the signs of timbre-role in mezzo-soprano voice carriers, based on the material of the operas of the famous masters G. Verdi and G. Bizet, despite the fact that this timbre-register flavour of singing covers characters extremely different in age and social status, and by national and ethnic indicators. The methodological basis is the intonation approach of the B. Asafyev school in the works of Ukrainian musicologists, including T. Verkina, O. Kozarenko, I. Lyashenko, O. Markova, O. Roshchenko, O. Sokolova and others, using scientific comparative-stylistic, hermeneutic, biographical-descriptive, analytical-typological, research methods. The scientific novelty is determined by the fact that for the first time in Ukraine and China the interpretation of the mezzo-soprano timbre as a timbre-role was put forward, namely, indicators, finding common ground in characters fundamentally different from social-psychological, ethnic-national, epoch-historical signs. For the first time, the famous parts from the operas of G. Verdi and G. Bizet are analysed in this perspective. Conclusions. The timbre-role of the mezzo-soprano in the operas of G. Verdi and the works of G. Bizet is revealed in the fact that the images of a woman-mother, a woman-seductress differ in socio-psychological, national, geographical and historical aspects, but they are characterszed by a pronounced masculine and forceful initiative composition, they all gravitate to song numbers, but distant from the simplicity of everyday manifestations of song, to the plasticity of revealing authority, a power attitude in relations with others, which causes accentuation of strong notes in low and middle registers. And this constitutes the historical separation of this type of singing from the "Rossinian" sopranos, who combined different timbres and various textures of the upper and lower registers, of which, from the middle of the 19th century, the upper gave "lightness" to the lyric sopranos, and the lower to the mezzo-sopranos of the post-romantic formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Autistic youth display difficulties in emotion recognition, yet little research has examined behavioral and neural indices of vocal emotion recognition (VER). The current study examines behavioral and event-related potential (N100, P200, Late Positive Potential [LPP]) indices of VER in autistic and non-autistic youth. Participants (N = 164) completed an emotion recognition task, the Diagnostic Analyses of Nonverbal Accuracy (DANVA-2) which included VER, during EEG recording. The LPP amplitude was larger in response to high intensity VER, and social cognition predicted VER errors. Verbal IQ, not autism, was related to VER errors. An interaction between VER intensity and social communication impairments revealed these impairments were related to larger LPP amplitudes during low intensity VER. Taken together, differences in VER may be due to higher order cognitive processes, not basic, early perception (N100, P200), and verbal cognitive abilities may underlie behavioral, yet occlude neural, differences in VER processing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the vocal performance art in Bulgarian popular music in the period of the 90s of the 20th century – the 20s of the 21st century. The subject of the study are 29 emblematic performers of the period, including one duet. A total of 625 songs from the mentioned period and from the previous one (between the 1950s and 1980s) were studied and analyzed. In the vocal practice of the studied 29 artists, the presence of 2 approaches to the inherited tradition is established. One is its use and refinement. The other is expressed in the rejection of inherited practices and the implementation of new ones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The academic study of harsh vocals has been gaining traction of late, as the physiology (Eckers et al., 2009), creative attributes (Di Lorenzo & Trantino, 2016) and socio-political ramifications (Heesch, 2019) of usage have been covered in some depth by existing literature. However, formalised pedagogical study around the technique is somewhat lacking, as each vocalist has a unique path to the style and it is highly unlikely to be the result of formal training. In Australia this situation is exacerbated by the relative isolation of the individuals learning due to its small population, large geographic size and relative lack of popularity of heavy metal. This research involved interviewing five active harsh vocalists about their journey to learning and revealed that individuals were unlikely to engage in formal training and were more likely to experiment, seek access to information online and engage with strategies from other vocal styles in order to develop their own sound. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this manuscript was to review the indications, efficacy, and safety of a 585 nm pulsed dye laser (PDL) in non-malignant laryngeal lesions. Following the PRISMA statement recommendations, three independent authors searched for articles published in PubMed/MEDLINE, the Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, Scielo, and Web of Science. A bias analysis was performed following NICE guidance tools. From the 506 identified publications, 19 observational studies met the inclusion criteria. The PDL improves vocal quality objectively and subjectively in vascular lesions (p < 0.005) and improves vocal quality in patients with dysplasia/leukoplasia without changing the natural history of the disease compared to other treatments. Reinke's edema and granulomas require an average of 1.5 PDL sessions for resolution. Treatment of recurrent respiratory papillomatosis requires multiple sessions, with complete remission achieved in 50–70% of patients. Regardless of the lesion, the tolerance of the procedure under local anesthesia is exceptional (84–97%), and the results in terms of regression and vocal quality are promising. The complication rate is minimal, and the procedure does not interfere with other treatment alternatives. There is no consensus on laser settings. The lack of consistent use in evaluating vocal outcomes, whether objective or subjective, prevents the comparability between studies. The 585 nm pulsed dye laser appears to be an effective and safe therapeutic option in patients with non-malignant laryngeal pathology. Future controlled studies are needed to compare the 585 nm pulsed dye laser with other lasers or cold instrument procedures. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Animal communication has long been thought to be subject to pressures and constraints associated with social relationships. However, our understanding of how the nature and quality of social relationships relates to the use and evolution of communication is limited by a lack of directly comparable methods across multiple levels of analysis. Here, we analysed observational data from 111 wild groups belonging to 26 non-human primate species, to test how vocal communication relates to dominance style (the strictness with which a dominance hierarchy is enforced, ranging from 'despotic' to 'tolerant'). At the individual-level, we found that dominant individuals who were more tolerant vocalized at a higher rate than their despotic counterparts. This indicates that tolerance within a relationship may place pressure on the dominant partner to communicate more during social interactions. At the species-level, however, despotic species exhibited a larger repertoire of hierarchy-related vocalizations than their tolerant counterparts. Findings suggest primate signals are used and evolve in tandem with the nature of interactions that characterize individuals' social relationships.

The purpose of this work is to generalise the characteristics of the concepts of "voice philosophy" and "timbrerole" accepted in modern musicology, which indicate the non-artistic meaning of expressiveness of singing, which, together with the artistic and plot indicators, give capacity to its metaphorical essence. The methodological basis is culturalised musicology, as presented in the works of the heirs of B. Asafiev in Ukraine, namely in the works, except for the author of this essay, by D. Androsova, M. Davydov, I. Zinkiv, O. Kozarenko, O. Muravska, O. Roschenko, N. Syrotynska, the works of G. Adler, M. Grappler, R. Ingarden, in which the synthesis of musicological analysis and humanitarian and cultural comparative analysis is embedded in the awareness of the expressive self-importance of performing creativity. The scientific novelty lies in the fact that for the first time in a theoretical and logical exposition, the conceptual contents of the terms "timbre-role", "voice philosophy" are presented, which were introduced by the authors of the studies in the generalisation of musicological observations, summarising the understanding of the vivid performance-pedagogical discoveries of the dissertations completed under the supervision of by the author of this essay, O. Markova, and stated in this conceptual interpretation in the 2015 book, subsequently tested in research by representatives of the specified scientific school. Conclusions. The analysis of the stages of introduction and approbation of the accepted terms "timbre-role", "voice philosophy" shows that logically and chronologically the first of the named - "timbre-role" was the most basic, which proved to be valuable due to the generalisation of the cultural and symbolic beginnings of singing skills, moreover, in volumes of both European, genetically ecclesiastical, vocals, and singing-singing of the Chinese opera tradition. The observation of historical changes in the interpretation of male and female voices, the "absorption" by both of them of the primary syncretic masculinity of singing sound expression in general provides the foundations of the "philosophy of the voice", "speculative theory of singing" (compared with the concept of "speculative theory of music" in relation to the designation of musical aesthetics in the 19th century), in which the ideal-extraordinary beginning leads to a distinction with the speech intonation layer, which attests to the essential sound life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Observing someone perform an action automatically activates neural substrates associated with executing that action. This covert response, or automatic imitation, is measured behaviourally using the stimulus–response compatibility (SRC) task. In an SRC task, participants are presented with compatible and incompatible response–distractor pairings (e.g., an instruction to say "ba" paired with an audio recording of "da" as an example of an incompatible trial). Automatic imitation is measured as the difference in response times (RT) or accuracy between incompatible and compatible trials. Larger automatic imitation effects have been interpreted as a larger covert imitation response. Past results suggest that an action's biological status affects automatic imitation: Human-produced manual actions show enhanced automatic imitation effects compared with computer-generated actions. Per the integrated theory for language comprehension and production, action observation triggers a simulation process to recognize and interpret observed speech actions involving covert imitation. Human-generated actions are predicted to result in increased automatic imitation because the simulation process is predicted to engage more for actions produced by a speaker who is more similar to the listener. We conducted an online SRC task that presented participants with human and computer-generated speech stimuli to test this prediction. Participants responded faster to compatible than incompatible trials, showing an overall automatic imitation effect. Yet the human-generated and computer-generated vocal stimuli evoked similar automatic imitation effects. These results suggest that computer-generated speech stimuli evoke the same covert imitative response as human stimuli, thus rejecting predictions from the integrated theory of language comprehension and production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Clergy sexual abuse has become a key area of interest in the study of U.S. Catholic history. For decades, survivors and whistleblowers have written passionately about the pain and scandal of clerical abuse. Journalists and social scientists have described their suffering as a "crisis" caused by individual and organizational pathologies, while lawyers and criminologists have advocated for financial and carceral solutions. Questions of religion and history took a backseat to these framings of clerical abuse as deviant, clinical, and judicial. After a recent influx of new resources, American Catholic historians now have the opportunity to reshape the discourse by contextualizing clergy sexual abuse within Catholic history and culture. Although this work has just begun, emerging projects suggest that intersectional and interdisciplinary approaches might unlock new ways of understanding not just clergy abuse but also the related topics of Catholic childhood, gender, and sexuality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We provide a study comparison between two-dimensional measurement and volumetric (3D) segmentation of the lateral ventricles and brain structures in fetuses with isolated and non-isolated ventriculomegaly with 3D virtual organ computer-aided analysis (VOCAL) ultrasonography vs. magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) analyzed with 3D-Slicer software. In this cross-sectional study, 40 fetuses between 20 and 38 gestational weeks with various degrees of ventriculomegaly were included. A total of 71 ventricles were measured with ultrasound (US) and with MRI. A total of 64 sonographic ventricular volumes, 80 ventricular and 40 fetal brain MR volumes were segmented and analyzed using both imaging modalities by three observers. Sizes and volumes of the ventricles and brain parenchyma were independently analyzed by two radiologists, and interobserver correlation of the results with 3D fetal ultrasound data was performed. The semiautomated rotational multiplanar 3D VOCAL technique was performed for ultrasound volumetric measurements. Results were compared to manually extracted ventricular and total brain volumes in 3D-Slicer. Segmentation of fetal brain structures (cerebral and cerebellar hemispheres, brainstem, ventricles) performed independently by two radiologists showed high interobserver agreement. An excellent agreement between VOCAL and MRI volumetric and two-dimensional measurements was established, taking into account the intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC), and a Bland–Altman plot was established. US and MRI are valuable tools for performing fetal brain and ventricular volumetry for clinical prognosis and patient counseling. Our datasets could provide the backbone for further construction of quantitative normative trajectories of fetal intracranial structures and support earlier detection of abnormal brain development and ventriculomegaly, its timing and progression during gestation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of laparoscopic tubal disconnection for the management of hydrosalpinx before ICSI on ultrasonographic markers of endometrial receptivity, ovarian blood flow and volume. Methods Infertility treatment candidate women were divided into two groups, the hydrosalpinx group (HxG) and the non-hydrosalpinx group, totaling 120 women (nHxG). 60 women in the HxG experienced hydrosalpinx, whereas 60 women in the nHxG had unexplained infertility. LH levels in urine samples were used to identify an LH peak. On cycle day LH+6, the TVUS examination was solely done in the HxG. Laparoscopic tubal disconnection was then carried out. On day LH+6 of the cycle, which came before the ICSI cycle, the same ultrasonographic measurements were then collected in both groups. Outcome measures Uterine a. RI and PI, spiral a. RI and PI, ovarian a. RI and PI, endometrial thickness, pattern and volume, endometrial VI, FI and VFI and ovarian VI, FI, VFI and volume and zone of vascular penetration. Results We found no measurably massive contrasts between the two gatherings in the uterine a. RI and PI, winding a. RI and PI, ovarian a. RI and PI, endometrial thickness and volume (p=0.642), or the nHxG following tubal separation. endometrial VI (p=0.887), FI (p=0.646) and VFI (p=0.652) and ovarian VI (p=0.648), FI (p=0.646), VFI (p=0.638) and ovarian volume (p=0.646), endometrial example and zone of vascular infiltration. Conclusions Laparoscopic tubal disconnection has no significant effect on endometrial, subendometrial, uterine, ovarian blood flow, endometrial and ovarian volumes, endometrial pattern and zone of vascular penetration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Expressions of disgust have typically been studied as isolated faces or voices but rarely as embodied practices in everyday interaction. Building on multimodal interactional research on emotions and sensoriality, this paper addresses disgust as a unique topic at the intersection between psychological theory and interactional facts. A case of an adult enacting post-consumption disgust is analysed, detailing the transformation of the facial, auditory, and embodied expressions across interactional sequences and in collaboration with others. The paper showcases the variability of disgust expressions and their involvement in social actions such as displaying stamina or stoicism toward challenges.

Listeners locate potential mates using species-specific vocal signals. As tetrapods transitioned from water to land, lungs replaced gills, allowing expiration to drive sound production. Some frogs then returned to water. Here we explore how air-driven sound production changed upon re-entry to preserve essential acoustic information on species identity in the secondarily aquatic frog genus Xenopus. We filmed movements of cartilage and muscles during evoked sound production in isolated larynges. Results refute the current theory for Xenopus vocalization, cavitation, and favor instead sound production by mechanical excitation of laryngeal resonance modes following rapid separation of laryngeal arytenoid discs. Resulting frequency resonance modes (dyads) are intrinsic to the larynx rather than due to neuromuscular control. Dyads are a distinctive acoustic signature. While their component frequencies overlap across species, their ratio is shared within each Xenopus clade providing information on species identity that could facilitate both conspecific localization and ancient species divergence.Editorial noteThis article has been through an editorial process in which the authors decide how to respond to the issues raised during peer review. The Reviewing Editor's assessment is that all the issues have been addressed (see decision letter).

Introduction: Stress and the pressure to perform in a competitive world has led to a rise in insomnia cases, especially in medical students. Music serves as a great alternative or additional therapy and hence, specifying the details of the type of music and creating a standard set of musical parameters, e.g., a specific value for tempo that sleep music should have. This will make it a more viable and clear option. One of these important but minimally explored aspects is timbre of music. Aim: To assess and compare the effect of timbre of different musical sounds on an individual’s quality of sleep, duration and day time sleepiness. Materials and Methods: This prospective interventional (community trial) study was done in the Department of Physiology, Velammal Medical College Hospital and Research Institute, Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India for three weeks. Hundred medical students having insomnia were chosen and split into five groups: Group A-Sitar, B-violin, C-vocal, D-flute and E-control. Groups A-D had to listen to tracks with an assigned timbre for 20 minutes before going to sleep daily for three weeks. Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) and the Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS) were used to assess sleep quality, duration and day time sleepiness. Kruskal-Wallis test was used to analyse the results. Results: Sleep quality improved with sitar being the one that improved the quality the most, followed by violin, then flute and finally, vocal (p-value=0.001). Sleep duration improved with sitar being the one that showed the most improvement, followed by flute, then violin and finally, vocal (p-value=0.001). Daytime sleepiness decreased with sitar being the one that decreased it the most, followed by violin, then flute and lastly, vocal (p-value=0.021). Conclusion: The most effective timbre in improving sleep quality, duration and reducing day time sleepiness was Sitar and the least effective was vocal.

The purpose of the article is to highlight the specifics of chamber singing as a special expressive technique in canvases, generally designed for presentation on a large scene, which allows, on the one hand, to clarify the idea of K. Orff's stylistics, and on the other hand, to make a contribution to the theory of chamber art in the aspect of modeling its features in the conditions of a large-scale scenic embodiment. The methodological basis of the research is the intonation approach to the nature of music in the traditions of the works of the followers of B. Asaf'ev's concept in Ukraine in the works of O. Markova, O. Muravska, L. Shevchenko with a principle emphasis on stylistic-comparative, hermeneutic, historical-descriptive, and cultural-disciplinary for secretion of epoch stylistic status of works, essential in modernity significance of their expressive aspects, their explanation by the author, historic world-outlook interaction of music expedients with expedients of other types of arts. The scientific novelty of the study is formed by the originality of the vision of the data expressiveness in the title of K. Orff's works, as well as the discovery of the theoretical formulation of such a feature of chamber vocals as «hiding» the dynamic excess of expressing the capabilities of the operatic voice by placing the melody in extreme registers with appropriate textural indicators. Conclusions. Chamber vocal constitutes a typological expressiveness of singing, which is organically adjusted by the conditions of salon or salon-style voicing of works, but also has a symbolic expressive cut, which, as a special method of sound expression, is detected in works designed for dynamic large-scale presentation, but with artistically grounded techniques of chamber singing in zones of so-called "quiet" climaxes and starting points of "crescendoing" dramaturgy, as we find in two famous scenic cantatas and the extremely popular opera by K. Orff. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article uses in-depth performance descriptions to engage in a form of writing as documentation of live performance. I frame my practice-led research in performance art by scoring and writing through four selected performances: Nape (2013), Scaw (2014), Mean (2016) and Faults (2019). These performance descriptions are presented as performance documentation providing insight to an established practice in performance art that is language-oriented. This writing is both descriptive and autobiographical and explore methods and tasks that use the vocal-body as 'writing with the voice' and 'live writing' over extended duration. These texts position the creation of language-oriented performance art from within, expanding and reframing my own performances that bring new understandings on how we read, witness and experience experimental writing practice in performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Notable books on raga sangeet from authors like Bhatkhande, Patwardhan, Jha, Shah, Banerjee etc. chiefly inform about the following types of Malhar: Suddha Malhar, Gaud Malhar, Megh, Miya ki Malhar, Ramdasi Malhar, Surdasi Malhar, Nat Malhar, Dhoolia Malhar, Mirabai ki Malhar, Charjoo ki Malhar, Gaudgiri Malhar and Jayant Malhar and many more. According to Bhatkhande raga Suddha Malhar has the ghatak avayav or constituent elements for all the other Malhars. The anga of Malhar mainly consists of a strong associational bond between the swaras m-R and R-P. A phrase like n D N Ṡ is specially accredited to raga Miya Malhar. However, raga Miya Malhar itself is a blend of the Suddha Malhar and Kanada angas. The primary objective of this paper is to analyze the vocal performances of five types of Malhar ragas which include, Suddha Malhar, Gaud Malhar, Miya ki Malhar, Sur Malhar or Surdasi Malhar and Ramdasi Malhar. It is being assumed that an anga-based qualitative assessment of recorded performances, would aid in bringing a thorough understanding of raga sangeet, enabling an understanding of the difference between theory and its application in the performance practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vocal communication is used across extant vertebrates, is evolutionarily ancient, and beenmaintained, inmany lineages. Here I reviewthe neural circuit architectures that support intraspecific acoustic signaling in representative anuran, mammalian and avian species as well as two invertebrates, fruit flies and Hawaiian crickets. I focus on hindbrain motor control motifs and their ties to respiratory circuits, expression of receptors for gonadal steroids in motor, sensory, and limbic neurons as well as divergent modalities that evoke vocal responses. Hindbrain and limbic participants in acoustic communication are highly conserved, while forebrain participants have diverged between anurans and mammals, as well as songbirds and rodents. I discuss the roles of natural and sexual selection in driving speciation, as well as exaptation of circuit elements with ancestral roles in respiration, for producing sounds and driving rhythmic vocal features. Recent technical advances in whole brain fMRI across species will enable real time imaging of acoustic signaling partners, tying auditory perception to vocal production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Vocal communication is used across extant vertebrates, is evolutionarily ancient, and been maintained, in many lineages. Here I review the neural circuit architectures that support intraspecific acoustic signaling in representative anuran, mammalian and avian species as well as two invertebrates, fruit flies and Hawaiian crickets. I focus on hindbrain motor control motifs and their ties to respiratory circuits, expression of receptors for gonadal steroids in motor, sensory, and limbic neurons as well as divergent modalities that evoke vocal responses. Hindbrain and limbic participants in acoustic communication are highly conserved, while forebrain participants have diverged between anurans and mammals, as well as songbirds and rodents. I discuss the roles of natural and sexual selection in driving speciation, as well as exaptation of circuit elements with ancestral roles in respiration, for producing sounds and driving rhythmic vocal features. Recent technical advances in whole brain fMRI across species will enable real time imaging of acoustic signaling partners, tying auditory perception to vocal production.

Previous sport research has demonstrated that athletes of higher levels employ imagery more than low-level athletes. Because there is currently little research on imagery's application in singers, the purpose of the present study was to investigate whether this finding is reflected in low-level and high-level singers. A study-specific questionnaire was developed that examined singers' imagery use. The questionnaire consisted of four subscales that assessed vocal technique, performance anxiety regulation, goals, and characterization. It was found that singers used imagery most for characterization (i.e., portraying a character or feeling), followed by goals, vocal technique, and performance anxiety regulation. No differences existed between professional and student singers' imagery use. There was a significant difference between males and females on the characterization subscale, suggesting that female singers may use imagery for characterization more so than males. Introducing this approach to imagery to singers and teachers of singing has the potential to influence music education in school settings and impact curriculum development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Dual-task training is an emerging field used for people with Parkinson disease (PD) to improve their physical and cognitive well-being, but the patients’ acceptability, safety, and adherence to such training in online settings are unknown. Objective: This study aims to evaluate the acceptability of a dual-task cognitive and motor online training program for people with PD as a group online community program. Methods: People with PD were invited to participate in an online program (PD3 Move) consisting of physical and vocal exercises in response to different cognitive challenges displayed as dynamic backgrounds on Zoom. The program ran twice per week for 16 weeks. Patient acceptability was assessed at 4 months by monitoring attendance rates and feedback from an exit questionnaire emailed to all participants assessing satisfaction, perceived benefit, safety, and willingness to continue and recommend to others. Results: The online program was delivered to 15 participants (n=9, 60%, females) with a diagnosis of PD, a mean age of 69.4 (SD 9.3) years, and Hoehn and Yahr (H&Y) stages I-IV. The attendance rate was high, with participants coming to more than 13 (81%) of the sessions. Participants were very satisfied (n=8, 53%) or satisfied (n=7, 47%) with the program. Participants reported that what they most liked were the new cognitive physical challenges. The 3 main facilitators to participating were perceiving the benefits, instructor’s flexibility and engagement, and the social interaction moments with others. The 3 main difficulties were dealing with motor fluctuations (n=3, 20%), difficulties in using technology (n=2, 13%), and difficulty hearing instructions due to hearing loss (n=2, 13%). Patients had favorable perceived benefits of the program, with 14 (93%) considering it very useful for the current management of health and 1 (7%) moderately useful. No adverse events were reported, and all participants said that they were willing to continue the program and recommend it to others. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the online cognitive and motor program was well received, safe, and perceived to be of benefit to this group of medically stable people with PD in H&Y stages I-IV. Access to specialized care and enhancement of long-term adherence to regular exercise can be achieved with online community group programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As Darwin first recognized, the study of emotional communication has the potential to improve scientific understanding of the mechanisms of signal production as well as how signals evolve. We examined the relationships between emotional arousal and selected acoustic characteristics of coo and scream vocalizations produced by female rhesus macaques, Macaca mulatta , during development. For coos, arousal was assessed through measures of stress-induced elevations of plasma cortisol exhibited in response to the human intruder test. In the analysis of screams, arousal was evaluated from the intensity of aggression experienced by the vocalizer during natural social interactions. Both call types showed a positive relationship between arousal and overall fundamental frequency (F0, perceived as pitch in humans). In coos, this association was dampened over development from infancy (6 months) to the juvenile, prepubertal period (16 months) and further to menarche (21.3–31.3 months), perhaps reflecting developmental changes in physiology, anatomy and/or call function. Heightened arousal was also associated in coos with increases in an acoustic dimension related to F0 modulation and noisiness. As monkeys matured, coos showed decreases in overall F0 as well as increased noisiness and F0 modulation, likely reflecting growth of the vocal apparatus and changes in vocal fold oscillation. Within screams, only one acoustic dimension (related to F0 modulation) showed developmental change, and only within one subclass of screams within one behavioural context. Our results regarding the acoustic correlates of arousal in both call types are broadly consistent with findings in other species, supporting the hypothesis of evolutionary continuity in emotion expression. We discuss implications for broader theories of how vocal acoustics respond to selection pressures. • Cortisol reactivity predicted fundamental frequency of coo calls. • Aggression severity predicted the fundamental frequency of scream calls. • Maturation to menarche yielded changes in acoustics and arousal expression. • Findings support phylogenetic continuity in vocal emotion expression. • Emotion may be a significant factor in the evolution of vocal acoustics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As films are distributed across the globe, film song translation has become a subject of study, which entails considering multi-modal factors. This paper aims to explore the major dimensions and parameters involved in film song translation. Based on previous research on music and translation, this paper proposes a framework for studying film song translation from verbal, vocal, and visual dimensions. The verbal dimension involves semantic meaning, metaphors, images, mood, and emotion. The vocal dimension includes the number of syllables and musical notes, the length of musical notes, rhyme and parallelism, the rise and fall of the melody, and the segmentation of a line. The visual dimension covers the plot, characters, and background pictures. This paper uses this framework to analyze the Chinese translation of Amazing Grace in the film Forever Young to demonstrate how film song translation can be flexible in tackling verbal, vocal, and visual restrictions and possibilities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of fine motor skills on stereotyped movements of children with autism aged 7 to 15 years in Khomein in 1399. In this quasi-experimental study, 20 children with autism were selected by available sampling method from Khomein Sustained Autism Rehabilitation Center. Then the subjects were randomly divided into two control groups (n = 10) with mean age (10 ± 16/3) and mean height (118 ± 42/23) and mean weight (42 ± 16/7) and experimental group (n = 10) With mean age (12 ± 79/2) and mean height (116 ± 67/34) and mean weight (38 ± 34/8). The experimental group received 15 sessions of 40 minutes (three sessions per week) of fine motor skills training, and the control group performed their daily activities during this period. The Gilliam (Garz) autism test was used to assess stereotyped movements. Data analysis was performed by Leven, Kolmogorov-Smirnov test and multivariate variance at the significant level of P

Abstract Background To establish the normal reference range of fetal thorax by two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) ultrasound VOCAL technique and evaluate the application in diagnosing fetal thoracic malformations. Methods A prospective cross-sectional study was undertaken involving 1077 women who have a normal singleton pregnancy at 13–40 weeks gestational age (GA). 2D ultrasound and 3D ultrasound VOCAL technique were utilized to assess fetal thoracic transverse diameter, thoracic anteroposterior diameter, thoracic circumference, thoracic area, lung volume, thoracic volume and lung-to-thoracic volume ratio. The nomograms of 2D and 3D fetal thoracic measurements were created to GA. 50 cases were randomly selected to calculate intra- and inter-observer reliability and agreement. In addition, the case groups including congenital skeletal dysplasia (SD) (15), congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) (30), pulmonary sequestration (PS) (25) and congenital cystic adenomatoid malformation (CCAM) (36) were assessed by the nomograms and followed up subsequently. Results Both 2D and 3D fetal thoracic parameters increased with GA using a quadratic regression equation. The intra- and inter-observer reliability and agreement of each thoracic parameter were excellent. 2D fetal thoracic parameters could initially evaluate the fetal thoracic development and diagnose the skeletal thoracic deformity, and lung volume, thoracic volume and lung-to-thorax volume ratio were practical to diagnose and differentiate CDH, PS and CCAM. Conclusion We have established the normal fetal thoracic reference range at 13–40 weeks, which has a high value in diagnosing congenital thoracic malformations.

Memory recall and guidance are essential for motor skill acquisition. Like humans learning to speak, male zebra finches learn to sing by first memorizing and then matching their vocalization to the tutor's song (TS) during specific developmental periods. Yet, the neuroanatomical substrate supporting auditory-memory-guided sensorimotor learning has remained elusive. Here, using a whole-brain connectome analysis with activity-dependent viral expression, we identified a transient projection into the motor region, HVC, from neuronal ensembles responding to TS in the auditory forebrain, the caudomedial nidopallium (NCM), in juveniles. Virally induced cell death of the juvenile, but not adult, TS-responsive NCM neurons impaired song learning. Moreover, isolation, which delays closure of the sensory, but not the motor, learning period, did not affect the decrease of projections into the HVC from the NCM TS-responsive neurons after the song learning period. Taken together, our results suggest that dynamic axonal pruning may regulate timely auditory-memory-guided vocal learning during development. [Display omitted] • Specific manipulation of song-responsive neurons with a cFos-TetON system is created • Ablating tutor's song (TS)-responsive neurons prevents juveniles from song learning • TS-responsive neurons transiently project to song premotor area, HVC, in juveniles • Sensory isolation does not delay song crystallization or axon pruning in HVC Auditory memory guidance for motor shaping is necessary for vocal learning. Here, Louder et al. show transient axonal projections to the song premotor area from the neurons responsive to the tutor's song (TS) playback in the auditory forebrain. Ablating TS-responsive neurons disrupts song learning in juveniles but not in adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We provide a study comparison between two-dimensional measurement and volumetric (3D) segmentation of the lateral ventricles and brain structures in fetuses with isolated and non-isolated ventriculomegaly with 3D virtual organ computer-aided analysis (VOCAL) ultrasonography vs. magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) analyzed with 3D-Slicer software. In this cross-sectional study, 40 fetuses between 20 and 38 gestational weeks with various degrees of ventriculomegaly were included. A total of 71 ventricles were measured with ultrasound (US) and with MRI. A total of 64 sonographic ventricular volumes, 80 ventricular and 40 fetal brain MR volumes were segmented and analyzed using both imaging modalities by three observers. Sizes and volumes of the ventricles and brain parenchyma were independently analyzed by two radiologists, and interobserver correlation of the results with 3D fetal ultrasound data was performed. The semiautomated rotational multiplanar 3D VOCAL technique was performed for ultrasound volumetric measurements. Results were compared to manually extracted ventricular and total brain volumes in 3D-Slicer. Segmentation of fetal brain structures (cerebral and cerebellar hemispheres, brainstem, ventricles) performed independently by two radiologists showed high interobserver agreement. An excellent agreement between VOCAL and MRI volumetric and two-dimensional measurements was established, taking into account the intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC), and a Bland–Altman plot was established. US and MRI are valuable tools for performing fetal brain and ventricular volumetry for clinical prognosis and patient counseling. Our datasets could provide the backbone for further construction of quantitative normative trajectories of fetal intracranial structures and support earlier detection of abnormal brain development and ventriculomegaly, its timing and progression during gestation.

Les traits de Personnalité Psychopathique (tPP) existent au sein de la population non clinique (PNC). La littérature souligne que ces traits sont associés à des difficultés de traitement de l'information émotionnelle, tel le décodage des émotions. Cependant, aucune étude n'a mesuré les relations entre les tPP et le décodage multi-niveau des émotions (visage, voix et posture) au sein de la PNC francophone. Cette recherche évalue les liens entre les tPP évalués au travers de la SRP-4 avec un protocole structuré de décodage multi-niveau des émotions (NimStim, GEMEP, Scénario EMOTAIX et BESST). L'échantillon est constitué de 34 individus (22 femmes et 12 hommes) de la PNC. Les corrélations indiquent de nombreuses associations négatives, au travers des différents canaux, majoritairement entre les traits interpersonnels-affectifs et le décodage de l'ensemble des émotions, et spécifiquement de la colère (vocal sémantique et postural), de la peur (vocal sémantique) et de la surprise (facial). À l'inverse, une corrélation positive existe entre les traits interpersonnels-affectifs, le style de vie-antisocialité et l'expression faciale émotionnelle de dégoût. Les analyses de régression linéaire simple et multiple renseignent l'impact positif des traits interpersonnels-affectifs sur le décodage de l'EFE de dégoût. En outre, elles indiquent également l'impact négatif de ces mêmes traits sur le décodage de la colère (vocal sémantique), de la peur (vocal sémantique) et de la surprise (facial). Subclinical Psychopathic Personality traits (PPt) are found in non-clinical population (NCP). It has been hypothesized that PPt are associated with socio-affective deficit, such as emotions recognition. Although previous studies yielded mixed results, to our knowledge, none has been undertaken among a French-speaker NCP. Our research investigates multi-level emotions recognition accuracy through the three main channels: face, voice (prosody and semantic) and body posture. We hypothesized negative and significant associations and influences between SRP-4 scores and mean emotions recognition accuracy scores (total score and scores by emotion) in each channel. The sample consists of 34 individuals (22 women and 12 men). After signing a consent form, a short anamnesis was undertaken to collect sociodemographic information. Subclinical PPt were assessed using SRP-4. Afterwards, three computerized emotion recognition tasks were presented to participants in this order: NimStim (colorized, gendered, multi-ethnic stimuli morphed and dynamized in 10-second videos), GEMEP (gendered prosodic stimuli), gendered homemade scripts categorized using EMOTAIX and synthesized using Acapela-Box, and finally, BESST (monochromatic, gendered, static stimuli). Stimuli depicted the six basic emotions and participants were asked to make a forced choice between these six emotions labels. Parametric (Bravais-Pearson's r) and Non-Parametric (Spearman's r) analyses indicated negative and significant correlations mainly between interpersonal-affective traits and the accurate recognition of all emotions, specifically anger (vocal semantic and body posture), fear (vocal semantic) and surprise (facial). However, a positive and significant correlation was found between interpersonal-affective traits scores, lifestyle-antisocial traits scores and the accurate recognition of disgust (facial). Significant correlations were followed by simple or multiple linear regressions. Our research partially confirmed previous findings about a negative associations and influence of PPt and accurate recognition of emotions. However, some unexpected results (disgust) or lack of expected results (fear), combined with limitations, invites us to consider our results with caution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anton Webern's vocal music has long been overshadowed by the aphoristic miniatures and rigorously organized twelve-tone works--both largely instrumental genres--for which the composer is best known. Yet over half of Webern's output consists of vocal works. During the 1950s, as composers and intellectuals celebrated the "instrumental" Webern, an alternative view of the composer was emerging through the performances of three soprano soloists. Bethany Beardslee gave posthumous premieres of three of Webern's works in New York and recorded his Four Songs op. 12 for Dial Records. On the other side of the country, Grace-Lynne Martin and Marni Nixon performed works by Webern at the Evenings on the Roof in Los Angeles, and collaborated with Robert Craft on Columbia Records' Anton Webern: The Complete Music. Beardslee, Martin, and Nixon adopted a variety of approaches to learning Webern's famously difficult works, and their work paid off: all three sopranos earned praise for weathering the extreme technical challenges of Webern's soprano lines while also delivering musically satisfying performances. Yet these performances have been largely forgotten in the decades since, as a consequence of changing attitudes toward postwar performance practices as well as the sometimes sexist views of male music critics. Nevertheless, the performances of these sopranos constituted a crucial step toward perspectives on Webern that are now current among contemporary performers and scholars, and understanding their contributions is essential to understanding the vocal side of Webern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article aims to discuss Kusumadinata’s scale theory in Sundanese music which has been taught in educational institutions in West Java, Indonesia. According to Kusumadinata’s scale theory, sorog and pelog are scales derived from salendro scale in gamelan salendro performance. In my previous research, I investigated three genres of Sundanese performing arts which have existed since the Hindu era, namely goong renteng, pantun, and tarawangsa. The results indicate that the pelog scale has independently existed since the Hindu era. Then, I analyzed the phenomenon that occurs in the gamelan salendro performance, i.e., its melody (rebab and vocals) conventionally modulate into scale ‘like sorog’, occasionally into scale ‘like pelog’, whereas the instruments of gamelan are in the salendro scale. However, the analysis on the sorog in the previous research was not enough, so that in this paper, I will focus on the sorog. To find out the relationship between melody (vocal and rebab) and gamelan instruments, I examined the actual performances of gamelan salendro and wayang golek purwa. It became clear that the salendro scale derives four types of sorog. The findings of this study indicate that sorog has existed since the 19th century by this phenomenon, and the scale now called sorog is a scale derived from salendro.